Vineyard Wind flips the switch

Also: 5 local hospitals have brought back masking; a grand vision for BPS buildings [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  January 4, 2024 ☁️ Cloudy, with a high of 43. Good Morning Boston, We could see a few spots of snow flurries this morning, but the main event is this weekend, with the arrival of what's likely to be our first plowable storm of the year. There's still a lot of uncertainty for Eastern Massachusetts, so keep a close eye on [that rain-snow line](. But first, let's plow ahead to the news: - Return of the mask: Massachusetts [stopped requiring]( everyone in healthcare settings wear a mask nearly eight months ago. But in our first post-COVID emergency winter, the state's largest hospitals have unilaterally reimplemented mask mandates for certain individuals — largely staff — due to [a rise in respiratory illnesses](. (One in six emergency room visits in Massachusetts are now due to respiratory infections like COVID, flu and RSV.) Here's a look at the new mask policies at five of the state's biggest hospital systems: - Mass General Brigham: As of this Tuesday, the state's largest health care system is [requiring employees]( to wear a mask during "direct interactions with patients" in hospital rooms, bays and other clinical care areas. Patients are also "strongly encouraged" to wear a facility-issued mask during those interactions. (Masks are not required in lobbies, waiting rooms and other common areas.) - UMass Memorial: As of Tuesday, the Worcester hospital is requiring employees to wear masks in all patient areas and common areas — and "strongly" encouraging patients to do the same, especially if they are sick. Patients and visitors [may be asked to leave]( if they are asked to wear a mask and refuse. - Baystate Health: [As MassLive reported last week]( the Springfield-based hospital system is now requiring almost everyone to wear a mask at all times inside its hospitals. As of last Friday, that also includes all visitors over the age of 5. - Beth Israel Lahey: While masking is still optional for visitors, Beth Israel is now requiring masking for all employees upon entry to a patient room or bed space, The Boston Globe [reported last month](. - Boston Medical Center: The hospital [updated]( its mask mandate on Dec. 21 to cover everyone in clinical areas, like hospital rooms and the emergency department. Patients and visitors must also wear a mask in all areas if they have respiratory illness symptoms. - The Massachusetts Senate is slated to vote on a bill today aimed at making it easier for people to get their wheelchairs repaired. WBUR's Gabrielle Emanuel reports movement on the issue comes after [years of complaints by wheelchair users]( that they often have to wait weeks or months for fixes, disrupting their lives. - What the bill would do: Massachusetts already has a wheelchair warranty law, but this bill would add more consumer protections. That includes increasing the required minimum warranty from one year to two, setting time limits for manufacturers to assess defective chairs and provide loaners, and allowing wheelchair users to get repairs without prior authorization from a doctor for anything expected to cost under $1,000. - Go deeper: Disability advocates say the state's wheelchair laws [lag behind most of the rest of the country]( including neighboring Connecticut and Rhode Island. “We're catching Massachusetts up to get in line with other states who have stronger protections right now," state Sen. John Cronin, the bill’s sponsor, told Gabrielle. However, the bill has faced opposition from wheelchair manufacturers and providers. [Read more about the debate here](. - Ballot battles: Secretary of State Bill Galvin has officially sent all potential 2024 ballot questions to the State House. Now lawmakers will have the opportunity to act on them before they're put to voters. You can [read here about all six of the ballot campaigns]( which range from legalizing psychedelics to raising the tipped minimum wage. (While there are six campaigns, one submitted five different versions of its question, meaning there are technically 10 of those for the Legislature to consider.) - What's next: State House lawmakers have until April 30 to act on the issues (a [rare but not unprecedented]( option). If they don't, ballot campaigns must gather an additional 12,429 signatures to get their question on the November ballot. Galvin's office says it expects to finalize the official list of questions in July. P.S.— Former Gov. Charlie Baker's [official State House portrait]( was quietly installed just before Christmas, and [this thread on X has the story behind all the Easter eggs]( you might not notice in the picture. Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters [Follow](  Support the news  The Rundown [Vineyard Wind, country’s first large-scale offshore wind project, is producing clean electricity]( The Vineyard Wind project achieved “first power” late Tuesday when one operating turbine near Martha’s Vineyard delivered approximately five megawatts of electricity to the grid. The company said it expects to have five turbines operating at full capacity in early 2024. [Read more.]( [Vineyard Wind, country’s first large-scale offshore wind project, is producing clean electricity]( The Vineyard Wind project achieved “first power” late Tuesday when one operating turbine near Martha’s Vineyard delivered approximately five megawatts of electricity to the grid. The company said it expects to have five turbines operating at full capacity in early 2024. [Read more.]( [A grand vision, with few specifics, for the overhaul of Boston Public Schools buildings]( The plan does not include specific recommendations about the future of each of BPS's 119 school buildings. It serves instead as a procedural outline for how the district will inform families, craft solutions and enact them. [Read more.]( [A grand vision, with few specifics, for the overhaul of Boston Public Schools buildings]( The plan does not include specific recommendations about the future of each of BPS's 119 school buildings. It serves instead as a procedural outline for how the district will inform families, craft solutions and enact them. [Read more.]( [Court documents reveal names of powerful men allegedly linked to Jeffrey Epstein]( Epstein, a convicted sex trafficker who took his own life in 2019, has been linked to some of the world's most powerful men. Names included in the court documents aren't evidence of wrongdoing. [Read more.]( [Court documents reveal names of powerful men allegedly linked to Jeffrey Epstein]( Epstein, a convicted sex trafficker who took his own life in 2019, has been linked to some of the world's most powerful men. Names included in the court documents aren't evidence of wrongdoing. [Read more.]( [Harvard president's resignation highlights new conservative weapon against colleges: plagiarism]( The downfall of Harvard’s president has elevated allegations of plagiarism as a possible new weapon in conservative attacks on higher education. President Claudine Gay’s resignation Tuesday followed weeks of mounting accusations that she lifted language from other scholars in her doctoral dissertation and journal articles. [Read more.]( [Harvard president's resignation highlights new conservative weapon against colleges: plagiarism]( The downfall of Harvard’s president has elevated allegations of plagiarism as a possible new weapon in conservative attacks on higher education. President Claudine Gay’s resignation Tuesday followed weeks of mounting accusations that she lifted language from other scholars in her doctoral dissertation and journal articles. [Read more.]( [The Trump campaign embraces Jan. 6 rioters with money and pardon promises]( Three years after supporters of Donald Trump violently stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the future of the criminal cases against the rioters may hinge on the presidential election. [Read more.]( [The Trump campaign embraces Jan. 6 rioters with money and pardon promises]( Three years after supporters of Donald Trump violently stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the future of the criminal cases against the rioters may hinge on the presidential election. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - Not one to hibernate for the winter? Then [check out our list of five things to do this weekend]( including "Beetlejuice The Musical," Free Friday Nights at the Discovery Museum and a Moby Dick marathon in New Bedford (for only the most audacious Melville fans). - Women's professional hockey returned to "Boston" last night (well, Lowell, technically). And while [the first game's outcome]( wasn't what the home team wanted, there are high hopes for the newly launched league. Here's [what to know about the new team and its local ties](. - Eileen McNamara says the uproar over former Harvard president Claudine Gay was never about plagiarism or antisemitism. "Make no mistake: This is about the money," she writes in [this commentary for Cognoscenti](. - A crisis management consultant that works with colleges told WBUR's All Things Considered that the difficult situation that Harvard finds itself in is largely "self-inflicted." Read the interview highlights [here](.  What We're Reading 📚 - Claudine Gay: What Just Happened at Harvard Is Bigger Than Me ([The New York Times]( - The best advice we got in 2023 ([Vox]( - From card bowls to laundry chutes, remnants of our housing history ([The Boston Globe](  Life Advice [9 ways to get healthier in 2024 without trying very hard]( Last year, NPR's health reporters dug into the science of healthy living. Here are nine things they learned that can help you embrace small shifts with big payoffs in the year ahead. [Read more.]( [9 ways to get healthier in 2024 without trying very hard]( Last year, NPR's health reporters dug into the science of healthy living. Here are nine things they learned that can help you embrace small shifts with big payoffs in the year ahead. [Read more.]( Listen: The Common [talks to WBUR's Max Larkin]( about what Claudine Gay's resignation means for Harvard and the precedent it sets for higher education more broadly. Play: [WBUR's daily mini crossword.]( Can you keep your streak going? Before you go: [Calling all local Swifties.]( 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 🔎 Explore [WBUR's Field Guide]( stories, events and more. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news    Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here](.  Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2023 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.